Biographies

Joni Sighvatsson is a veteran producer, with over 30 feature films and television series to his credit, as well as an innovative and influential principal in creating the modern concept of the commercial and the music video.

Before coming to the United States, Sighvatsson enjoyed a successful career as a rock musician in his native Iceland, founding the country's first recording studio when he was 21. After finishing his B.A. in English and Literature from the University of Iceland, Sighvatsson came to Los Angeles on a Fulbright Scholarship to study at the University of Southern California Graduate Film Studies Program, where he earned his MFA. After USC, Sighvatsson was invited to join the Directors Program at the American Film Institute.

With fellow AFI student Steve Golin, Sighvatsson founded Propaganda Films in 1986, which quickly became the leading music video and commercial production company in the world, earning 30 MTV awards as well as numerous Grammys and Clios. The company expanded into feature films with such fare as "Red Rock West" and "Kalifornia," and won the coveted Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival for "Wild At Heart." At Propaganda, Sighvatsson launched the careers of such directors as David Fincher, Michael Bay and Spike Jonze.

Sighvatsson has also been involved with numerous television shows, including the Emmy-nominated "Armistead Maupin's Tales of the City," the innovative series "Twin Peaks," the triple ACE Award-winning anthology series "Fallen Angels," the quadruple ACE-winning "Heat Wave," as well as the popular "Beverly Hills 90210." In 1995, Sighvatsson became the founding president of Lakeshore Entertainment, where he produced or executive produced films such as "Polish Wedding," "Going All The Way," "Box of Moonlight," "200 Cigarettes" and "Arlington Road." He also acquired and developed such films as "The Mothman Prophecies", "L'Apartmente", and "Runaway Bride".

In 1999, Sighvatsson became the controlling shareholder in Palomar Pictures, a leading production company of music videos, television commercials, and long form projects. At Palomar, Sighvatsson cultivated and new generation of top directors, including Joseph Kahn, Gary McKendry, and Marcos Siega. While at Palomar, Sighvatsson also produced "The Weight of Water" starring Sean Penn and Elizabeth Hurley as well as "K-19: the Widowmaker" starring Harrison Ford and Liam Neeson Sighvatsson's many honors include Peabody Awards for "Rock The Vote" and "Armistead Maupin's Tales of the City," as well as being the only person to twice receive the Eastman/Kodak Award for Outstanding Achievement by the Music Video Producers Association. He serves and has served on the boards of numerous organizations including the AICP (Association of Independent Commercial Producers), the American Cinematheque, the American-Scandinavian Foundation, the ACLU of Southern California, and the Ocean Park Community Center. He is also the Honorary Consul General for Iceland in Los Angeles. Currently, Sighvatsson is preparing a slate of over twenty films. Soon to begin preproduction are "Elling", a remake of the Oscar nominated feature film to be directed by Jay Roach, and "The Knockout Artist", based on the cult classic by Harry Crewes, to be directed by Sean Penn. Currently in preproduction is "A Little Trip to Heaven", directed by award winning Icelandic director, Baltasar Kormakur.